The first two chapters of the Gospel of Luke are more than history, as we now understand the term. The narrative captures core truths of the events which took place upon the birth of Jesus. They serve as a mirror in which we discover the meaning of the birth of Jesus and recognize that Jesus came to fulfil the promise of the Old Testament. They reflect the longing of the human heart as we find out about Jesus. To the Christians of Luke’s time, the infancy narrative of Luke’s Gospel offered a lesson in how to persevere in adversity as the Old Law gave way to the New. The attitude of Mary is a model to us all, as we welcome Jesus into our own lives. We marvel just as Joseph and Mary marvelled. Mary’s obedience teaches the way [ … ]
Daily Bible Verses For Advent & Christmas
Daily Bible Verses | Christian Faith | The Baptism Of The Lord | Sin And Prayer | Jesus Is Baptized
Today’s Bible reading celebrates two complementary affirmations of Jesus’ true identity, of Jesus’ divinity. The first is of John the Baptist, who came to prepare the way toward Jesus, teaching people an initial baptism of repentance, with water, such that they might be initially prepared to receive the Lord. The second is of God the Father and the Holy Spirit, the divine affirmation, that of heaven, the Father’s voice visiting Earth and the Spirit descending, as heaven bows to Earth, the Father to acknowledge His beloved Son as His Own [ … ]
Daily Bible Verses | Jesus Heals A Leper | Miracles Of Jesus | Audio Bible KJV | God The Son | Faith In Christ
In order to find Jesus, the leper in these Gospel verses has had to transgress the law of the time, which was that he must live away from others, because whoever touched him would be impure. The leper has broken the religious laws so as to be with Jesus [ … ]
Daily Bible Verses | Jesus Preaches In Nazareth | Jesus Fasts And Reveals Himself | Fulfilment Of Prophecy | Audio KJV Bible | God The Son | The Spirit Of The Lord Is Upon Me
On the Sabbath, the day of rest and prayer, the Jews would gather in synagogues to recite the Shema and the eighteen blessings, which would be followed by readings from the Book of the Law, the Pentateuch, and from the Prophets. In today’s Gospel verses, Jesus has returned home to Nazareth, where, in the synagogue, he volunteers to read [ … ]
Daily Bible Verses | Jesus Walks On Water | Jesus Stills The Contrary Wind | Love Revealed By Jesus Christ
Immediately following the feeding of the 5000, the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and the fishes, Jesus tells his disciples to get into a boat, so that they may get away from the multitude, while Jesus himself remains to disperse the multitude, and then to go alone into the hills, to a mountain, to pray [ … ]
Daily Bible Verses | First Miracle Of The Loaves And Fishes | A Multitude In A Lonely Place | Jesus Teaching
Jesus has invited the disciples to come away with him to find a lonely place, where they might rest. The pressures of the apostolic ministry have been so great, there has not been time even to eat. Jesus and the apostles have gone away from the crowds in a boat, but the people have seen them leave and have run ahead to find them, arriving at the place before Jesus does. Jesus, then, changes his plans. The rest period is not to be. Jesus feels compassion for the spiritual needs of the people. They need the teaching Jesus is able to give to them. They are as sheep without a shepherd. This need is paramount [ … ]
Daily Bible Verses | Jesus Begins To Preach | The Kingdom Of Heaven Is At Hand | Christmas Gospel Readings
Jesus’ public ministry begins as John the Baptist’s concludes, John being imprisoned by Herod for speaking out against the immorality of Herod’s sexual relationship with his brother’s wife. Mission comes with danger, and John the Baptist was not afraid. Nor now is Jesus. Indeed, Jesus begins to preach with the very same words with which John had warned the people to beware of their sins: Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand [ … ]
Daily Bible Verses | Follow Me! | Philip And Nathaniel Are Called | Jesus’ First Disciples | The Apostles | Christmas Octave
Today, Jesus has decided to walk to Galilee. There is a wonderful sense of lively movement as Jesus moves from place to place during his ministry, as one rounding up the sheep of Israel. Jesus finds Philip and he gives Philip his vocation, saying to him: Follow me. Through Jesus’ lifetime, we read in the Bible of great crowds flocking to Jesus, and of great processional events, as well as the constant travelling with Jesus of his closest companions. There is movement, direction, purposiveness, through which the disciples grow closer and closer to Jesus, their living faith always developing as Jesus fits them to become shepherds of men [ … ]
Solemnity Of Mary, The Mother Of God | The Shepherds Find Jesus, Mary And Joseph | Christmas Octave
We discover in these verses of the Bible two distinct and complementary impulses which are at work in our relationship with God, exemplified by the shepherds and by Mary [ … ]
Daily Bible Verses Advent & Christmas | In The Beginning Was The Word | Christmas Day | Christmas Octave | Saint John’s Gospel KJV
The opening passages of John’s Gospel affirm key, central truths concerning the nature of Christ. He is the Word, the perfect, ideal and original Word giving meaning and life to all utterance. We sense here the influence of classical Hellenic philosophy on the developing understanding of Christ through the first century. And, from the very first verses of his Gospel, John affirms the divinity of Christ. Christ is with God, the Father, and he is God. God the Father and God the Son are distinct and too of one being; they are consubstantial [ … ]
Daily Bible Verses | The Feast Of Saint John, Apostle & Evangelist | The Beloved Disciple | Christmas
Today’s Bible reading from the Gospel of St John speaks of the beloved disciple, and from earliest times we have identified this disciple with John. It is strange, however, that this identification is not made in the Gospel. It may be that in so readily equating the beloved disciple with John, we miss out on an important truth of the Gospel, which is that we are all beloved disciples – this title is not that of John only; it is open to us all [ … ]
Daily Bible Verses | The Feast Of Saint Stephen | King James Audio Bible KJV | Advent And Christmas
There is an extraordinary contrast between yesterday’s celebration of the birth of Jesus, and today’s of the first Christian martyr, Stephen, stoned to death because he had to the courage to believe in Jesus, and would not be cowed into silence by the repressive actions of the Jewish authorities [ … ]
Daily Bible Verses Advent & Christmas | The Benedictus | Canticle Of Zechariah
For the first Christian communities, almost all of them Jewish, the Benedictus would have been a song of joy, thanking God for His fulfilment of the promise of ages: God has visited his people and redeemed them. The faith of those early Christians is strong as they look back along the road they have travelled since Abraham, and forward to a time of peace, light, salvation [ … ]
Daily Bible Verses Advent & Christmas | Birth And Circumcision Of John The Baptist | Neighbours In Jesus Christ | Jesus Was Jewish
John the Baptist is born into a small and close-knit community, in which all Elizabeth’s neighbours and family relations rejoice with her at the gift of new life the Lord has bestowed on her. This is clearly a good and healthy community environment, and this will be important to John’s formation, howbeit the people are, as small communities can often be, quite conservative in their ways, such that when Elizabeth tells them the child will be called John, she causes something of a fuss, because this is an unusual thing to do: ‘There is none of thy kindred called by this name,’ her friends complain to her [ … ]
Daily Bible Verses Advent & Christmas | The Visitation | Christian Faith | Jesus Prayer And Happiness | Blessed Mary, Mother Of God
Mary has expressed complete obedience to the angel Gabriel and to the will of God, declaring herself the handmaid of the Lord. Now she shows her love and compassion for her cousin and friend as she travels with haste to visit Elizabeth, who, she has learnt from Gabriel, is miraculously pregnant, despite her age [ … ]
Daily Bible Verses Advent & Christmas | Gabriel Visits Zechariah | The Birth Of John The Baptist Foretold
Elizabeth – Mary’s cousin – and Zechariah are of noble ancestry. They have spiritual nobility also, following in all of the commandments and ordinances of the old Law in such a way that they are righteous before God. Zechariah is a priest, moreover. He serves God in the Temple, at the centre of Jewish society and faith. His son John the Baptist will go out to the wilderness to preach, but his journey starts here [ … ]
Daily Bible Verses Advent & Christmas | Genealogy Of Jesus | Matthew’s Gospel
Christ is to be saviour of all mankind, in accordance with the promise to Abraham, and he is to bring an everlasting kingdom to the Jewish people, as prophesized to King David. He is identified right at the start of Matthew’s Gospel as the son of David and the son of Abraham. From one perspective, the genealogy then presented confirms these truths and roots Christ in a line that is itself a record of salvation history, which in the birth of the Son of God reaches its climax [ … ]
Daily Bible Verses For Advent | Christian Faith | Prayer | Jesus Teaching in the Temple | By What Authority? | King James Audio Bible KJV | Love Revealed By Jesus Christ
Today’s verses hold a message for those early Christians of the time when the Gospel was being written. Those Christians faced persecution at the hands of the Roman authority. It would have been reassuring for them to hear of how Jesus challenged authority, helping them to find the courage to keep their faith [ … ]
Daily Bible Verses Advent & Christmas | Elijah As John The Baptist | Christian Social Justice | Kingdom Of God
The disciples Peter, James and John have just witnessed the Transfiguration on the mountain. They have seen the glorified Christ, and now they are puzzled, because they have been taught that Elijah would come before the Messiah. These are the verses from the prophet Malachi, which are the last words of the Old Testament:
Daily Bible Verses For Advent | Christ’s Reproach To This Generation | Children In The Marketplace | Kingdom Of Heaven | Kingdom Of God
The image of children in these Bible verses is curious. We could read the lines as suggesting childishness, with one group of children expecting to amuse another and reacting peevishly when those others do not move according to the music they play. We could more broadly read these verses as suggesting a disconnect between various children, a failure of communication, recognition, response, which is emblematic of Christ and his followers and those who reject him …
Daily Bible Verses For Advent | John The Baptist | The Kingdom Of Heaven | King James Audio Bible KJV
In today’s verses, Jesus pays tribute to John the Baptist, telling the crowds that John the Baptist, until the dawn of the New Testament, the arrival of the Kingdom of God, was the greatest of people. John the Baptist was a courageous, inspirational figure and had the honour of proclaiming Christ’s presence, then he looked on satisfied as his disciples went from him to follow Christ: ‘He must increase, but I must decrease.’
Daily Bible For Advent | Jesus And The Christian Cross | My Yoke Is Easy And My Burden Is Light | Celebrate Christmas
We all face difficulties in our lives. The crowds who listen to Jesus must have felt cruelly burdened, labouring and seeming to find no true reward. They must have sensed injustice and longed for their Messiah to set them free [ … ]
Daily Bible For Advent | Parables Of Jesus Recalled | The Lost Sheep | Children In Christian Faith | Jesus And A Child
In these verses of the Bible, Christ expresses the love of God for all people. Christ’s is not an exclusive calling, nor especially a calling to those who most clearly, visibly, seem to adhere to the requirements of the Old Law; he has come to bring home to God those who have wandered, sinners who have fallen far from the Law. When a sinner comes home to God, there is incredible rejoicing in heaven. So we, though we may sin, should never be afraid to return to the Church, to say sorry, confess our sins, and find forgiveness [ … ]
Daily Bible For Advent | Monday Week 2 | Jesus Heals A Paralyzed Man | Towards Christmas | Nativity Of The Lord
The paralyzed man would not have been able to come to Jesus without the help of his friends. It is his friends’ faith, and their initiative and bravery, as well as his own that work together to find a way to come to Jesus. Jesus is touched by their faith and their friendship. We may think now as well about the help we give others and the help which we receive from others, in matters of faith and as we confess our sins and seek spiritual healing. Our sins can be like a form of spiritual paralysis, in which condition we may rely a great deal on our friends to bring us back to Jesus [ … ]
Daily Bible For Advent | Jesus’ Jewish Heritage | Christian Faith | The Lost Sheep Of Israel | Kingdom Of God
Today’s Bible verses, as per the Roman lectionary, notably elide Matthew 10: 5: ‘Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not.’ This omission is curious, though understandable: during the Mass especially, we are to contemplate inclusion rather than exclusion, and the intentions behind Jesus’ initial injunctions to those he sends to preach might well require explanation. Jesus, then, tells his missionary disciples: you are sent now to preach to the Jews alone, not to Gentiles, not to Samaritans, but to Jews alone [ … ]
Daily Bible For Advent | Healing Miracles | Faith And Sin | Prayer | Jesus Heals Two Blind Men | King James Audio Bible
While the Pharisees deny him, two blind men, who because of their blindness would be excluded from normal Jewish worship, are able to see Jesus for who and what he is. The way in which the blind men hail Jesus is significant: ‘Thou Son of David.’ This implies recognition of Jesus as the Messiah. It is as if, despite physical blindness, there is an inner light – and this is a thought we may all take to ourselves as we seek Jesus [ … ]
Daily Bible For Advent | Jesus’ Prayer And Healing | The Sermon On The Mount Concludes | Sin And Faith | The House Built On A Rock
Matthew’s account of the Sermon on the Mount has been related through the whole of chapters five, six and seven of his Gospel. Jesus concludes his teachings with today’s Bible verses, which carry both a promise and a warning. Commencing with the Beatitudes, Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount has presented to the people, toward the start of his ministry, a most beautiful, transformative understanding of God’s call to us to be with Him and to live according to the real, inner truth of the law [ … ]
Daily Bible For Advent | Wednesday Week 1 | The Second Miracle Of The Loaves And Fishes | Jesus Is The Bread Of Life
This, in Matthew’s Gospel, is the second miracle of the loaves and the fishes. Jesus is preaching and working his healing miracles in the border country, where Jews and pagans live side by side. The landscape seems symbolic, archetypal; as Jesus nears the Sea of Galilee, he goes up into a mountain. It is here that Jesus’ miracles lead both Jews and pagans to glorify the God of Israel [ … ]
Daily Bible For Advent | True Faith In Jesus | Christ’s Hymn Of Joy | Truth In Jesus Christ Son Of God | Our Father
Jesus, as he journeys to Jerusalem, has dispatched seventy disciples to go on ahead to preach and heal. The seventy have returned with wonderful news, that Christ’s name is power over demons, and, we sense, that the Gospel is preached and received; the harvest is truly plentiful [ … ]
Daily Bible For Advent | Monday Week 1 | Jesus Heals The Centurion’s Servant | Jesus Is Coming Soon
Today’s Bible verses present an extraordinary scene. The centurion is not merely a Gentile; he is an officer of the occupying Roman army – the enemy! – and he comes to a Jew for help. Further to this, the centurion has come to Jesus to ask him to help his servant. This might seem to us an awful lot of care expressed by a Roman officer for a servant, whom we might presume to be a slave. Further to this, the centurion has the tact to know that Jesus should not enter into a Gentile’s house, because this would be seen by the Jews as making him impure [ … ]
Daily Bible For Advent | First Sunday of Advent | Mark’s Gospel | True Faith | Christians Be With Jesus | Prayer | Let Us Watch
Our first Sunday Bible reading for advent picks up on themes from previous weeks. This now is Mark’s recording of the Sermon in the Temple, and we have here too, at the conclusion of the sermon, a declaration of Christ’s coming, of the parousia, of Christ the King. One key message remains: Beware, keep alert, watch; no one knows when this moment of full revelation will be save the Father. Meanwhile, in this present world, live wholly with Jesus [ … ]
Prayer To Saint Elizabeth, Wife Of Zachariah, Cousin Of Mary, Mother Of Saint John The Baptist | Love Revealed By Jesus Christ | Saint Luke’s Gospel | Infancy Narratives Of Jesus | God Is Love
Elizabeth is introduced in Luke 1:5 as a woman ‘of the daughters of Aaron,’ indicating her priestly lineage, which complements her husband Zachariah’s role as a priest ‘of the course of Abia’ (Luke 1:5). Both Elizabeth and Zachariah are described as ‘righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless’ (Luke 1:6). This emphasizes their piety and faithfulness to God’s law. Despite their righteousness, the couple is childless because Elizabeth is barren, and both are advanced in age (Luke 1:7) [ … ]
Daily Bible Verses Advent & Christmas | Epiphany Of The Lord | 3 Kings | Three Wise Men | King James Audio Bible KJV
The Epiphany is an extraordinary event in the Bible, whereby we hear of the gift and revelation of Christ to all mankind. The three wise men have long studied the heavens; they have been looking for signs, for truths to guide them. They are of the east, of the orient, not of the Jewish people. They have seen the new star that is there to signify Christ and have come on pilgrimage to seek, to find and to worship Jesus [ … ]
Epiphany Of The Lord | The Magi | Three Kings / Three Wise Men | Meaning Of Epiphany | Gifts Of Gold, Frankincense And Myrrh | King Herod And The Flight To Egypt | King James Audio Bible
The word “epiphany” comes from the Greek word “epiphaneia,” which means “manifestation” or “appearance.” In the Christian tradition, the Epiphany is considered to be the day when the divinity of Jesus was revealed to the world through the visit of the Magi, also known as the three wise men or kings, who brought gifts to the newborn Jesus [ … ]
A Reading Of The Martyrdom Of Saint Stephen | King James Audio Bible KJV | Acts Of The Apostles
Saint Stephen was a Christian saint and martyr who is venerated as the protomartyr, or first martyr, of Christianity. He is mentioned in the New Testament as one of the seven deacons appointed by the early Christian community in Jerusalem to serve the poor and distribute food and other necessities. According to the Acts of the Apostles, Stephen was a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit, and he was known for his powerful preaching and miraculous deeds [ … ]
Daily Bible Verses For Advent | Gospel Faith | Sin | Healing | John the Baptist’s Messengers to Jesus
John the Baptist has been imprisoned for speaking the truth about how the people should prepare themselves to be fit for the coming of the Kingdom. It may seem strange that he now sends to Jesus to ask him if he is indeed the one to come, the Messiah. Does John now doubt that Jesus is the Son of God?
Advent | True Faith | Christianity | Baptism | Prepare Ye The Way Of The Lord | Clean And Pure In Jesus
The message of this Sunday’s Gospel is so clear and so perfect. John has come to prepare the way of the Lord. He is not the Lord; he is come to prepare his way, the way of Christ.
The opening of John’s Gospel may be heard this week as a beautiful restatement from a new point of view of the message of the coming of the Lord and the beginning of Christ’s ministry [ … ]
Daily Bible Verses Advent & Christmas | Fourth Sunday Of Advent | Hail Mary, Full Of Grace, The Lord Is With Thee
In this Sunday’s Gospel reading we are reminded particularly of the devotion we offer to Mary and of the saving grace the Mother of God brings to our relationship with Jesus. We are reminded once again to think of Mary as the greatest intercessor to whom we may pray. We think as well of how through our relationship with Mary we help enable our knowledge of God within our hearts: it is as if through our love of the Mother of God, Christ may be continually born within us; we seek to become akin to Mary, to emulate her example, so that through the Mother we may the better know the Son [ … ]